Rotatable supporting member for conveying devices



0 1952 B. E. J. KLHJBERG 2,615,193

ROTA'IIABLE SUPPORTING MEMBER FOR CONVEYING DEVICES Filed May 11, 1949 Patented Uct. 28, 1952 OFFICE ROTATABLE SUPPORTING MEMBER FOR CONVEYING DEVICES Bernardus Everardus Jozephus Kliiberg, 'llilburg, Netherlands Application May 11, 1949, Serial No. 92,592 In the Netherlands March 17, 1949 4 Claims. 1

In many factories and plants rollers or other rotatable supporting members are employed for conveying devices, such as interplant transport wagons, and the like. These rollers or rotatable members are liable to come into contact with thread-like and elongated material which is fabricated or processed in such factories and plants or which occurs there as waste matter. In this connection the difiiculty is encountered that said material accumulates between these members and the brackets or holders for the axles of said members and becomes caught therebetween so as to jam the rotatable members to a greater or less extent. If this accumulated material is not prevented from exerting its adverse influence by continuously removing it, which is inconvenient and time-consuming, serious breakdowns and damage owing to undue wear and tear will result.

The object of this invention is to avoid the drawbacks attributable to these rotatable members by improving their construction.

According to the invention, this is achieved by making each side wall located between the operative surface and the axle of the rotatable supporting member of a closed frusto-conical surface extending up to the axle. Said frusto-conical surface may at the same time beat a concave configuration according to the invention.

The invention is illustrated hereinafter with reference to the drawing showing an embodiment applied to a caster for a transport wagon.

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the caster, partly in section;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section on the line 11-11 in Fig. 1.

The caster which by means of a vertical shaft l is secured to a horizontal supporting beam 2 of the transport wagon, comprises a forked holder 3 carrying an axle l between its prongs 3. A travelling roller 5 is mounted on this axle i in such a manner that said roller is adapted to rotate about the axle A but cannot shift relative thereto. To this end the travelling roller 5 is provided with a radial screw pin ii, one end-oi which extends into a circumferential groove '5 in the axle t. The internal recess of the travelling roller may contain fat for lubricating purposes.

The side walls of the travelling roller 5 are so constructed that the outer side of each of these walls forms a closed conical surface 8 extending from the running surface of the roller 5 to the axle 4 and ending there at some distance from the associated prong 3'. It is preferred to give said conical surface a concave configuration as shown in the drawing. Owing to the special shape of the outside of the side walls of the travelling roller, which outside is closed and which may be given as smooth a surface as possible and because of the fact that this outside ends at some distance from the associated prong 3' and for the rest flowingly merges into the outer circumference of the axle 4, threads or other elongated refuse parts that may be lying about on the floor over which the caster is moved, will find no points to which they can attach themselves and will not accumulate between the travelling roller and its holder therefore. If, however, waste matter should cling to the prongs of the fork this will not interfere with the travelling roller, becausethe side walls of the roller which taper off until they merge into the axle, will continue rotating past said waste matter.

It is not detrimental to the proper working of the supporting member, however, if adjacent the axle the generatrix of the conical surface exhibits a steeper incline and reaches said axle at a less acute angle.

It will be clear that the application of the principle according to the invention to the rotatable members of other conveying devices offers the same advantages.

I claim:

1. A rotatable supporting member for a conveying device which comprisesan axle, means for supporting such axle and a roller mounted on and rotatable with respect to said axle, said roller having a central running surface and closed smooth side walls converging toward and extending to said axle but terminating short of the axle supporting means and forming therewith spaces which continuously diverge in a radially outward direction from said axle and means for preventing relative lateral movement between roller and said axle.

2. A rotatable supporting member for a conveying device in accordance with claim 1 in which the axle supporting means includes an inverted lJ-shaped bracket having downwardly depending prongs in which the axle is mounted beyond said roller.

3. A rotatable supporting member for a conveying device in accordance with claim 1 in which the means for preventing relative lateral movement between said roller and said axle includes a restraining member extending from the roller to the axle.

4. A rotatable supporting member for a conveying device comprising an inverted U-shaped supporting bracket forming a pair of spaced de- 2,61 5,193 3 4 pending hangers, an axle mounted in and extend- REFERENCES CITED ing througn said hangers, said axle having a The following references are of record in the centrally disposed circular groove, a roller file f this patent; mounted on and rotatable with respect to said axle, said roller having a central running sur- 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS face and closed, smooth, concave, conical side Number Name Date walls converging toward and extending to said 282,626 Garretson Aug. '7, 1883 axle but terminating inwardly of said hangers, 1,392,911 Chestnutt Oct. 11, 1921 and a radial screw pin extending through said 1,532,485 Gillespie Apr. 7, 1925 roller into said circular axle groove to prevent 10 relative lateral movement between said roller and axle.

BERNARDUS EVERARDUS JOZEPI-IUS KLIJBERG. 

